


4 Years 4 Days

by Katical



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Akaashi is waiting, Bokuto centric, Businessman Bokuto, M/M, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2016-07-12
Packaged: 2018-07-18 05:06:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7300699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katical/pseuds/Katical
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Did you miss me that much?” He teased.</p>
<p>“Kou, it’s been 4 years." Akaashi said slowly. "You’ve been gone for 4 years.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	4 Years 4 Days

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic and I'm not much of a writer, so I apologize if it's not very good.
> 
> Hope you enjoy it, anyway!

“Have you got everything?” Akaashi asked as Koutarou toed on his shoes.

“Yeah, I think so,” turning to face the shorter of the two, he pulled him into a tight hug. “I’ll be back in a week,” he mumbled into his boyfriend’s curly hair.

Akaashi pecked him shyly on the lips and replied, “Have a safe trip”.

After pulling apart, Koutarou picked up his travel bag and stepped out the door. “Hold down the fort while I’m away, alright?” He gave his signature smile over his shoulder as he walked away, hearing a soft click of the door close behind him.

 

The sun was low in the sky when Koutarou boarded his train. _Now for a 3 hour train ride to Miyagi,_ he thought. The train soon pulled out of the station and the city was slowly replaced by countryside scenery. He goes on business trips every now and then but never longer than a week or two, although that doesn’t stop him from missing Akaashi – a lot. During the journey, he tapped out various texts to his boyfriend talking about everything and nothing at all while smiling softly to himself whenever he received a reply.

When the train stopped at Miyagi station, Koutarou found himeself on a mostly deserted platform. He walked through empty streets and by the time he arrived at his hotel the sun was already setting. He checked in quickly, thanking the bright orange haired staff at the counter before climbing the stairs up to the second floor. He gracelessly flopped onto his bed and pulled out his phone to send a quick text to Akaashi saying he’s arrived, only to have it bounce back saying “no signal, please try again later”. He sighed in defeat and set his phone aside on the bedside table pondering what to do for the remaining evening. At that moment his stomach growled loudly, _well that answers my question._

Upon reaching the lobby, the hotel staff from before asked, “How do you like your room, Bokuto-san?”

“Yeah I like it, thank you Hinata-kun. Say, do you know where I can get myself a good dinner tonight?”

“Ohh yeah! If you go out the hotel and take a left,” he gestured with his hands to emphasise the direction “and keep walking straight for about 5 minutes, you’ll come across a restaurant called Karasu’s next to the florist. Their food is great! And if you tell Daichi-san or Suga-san that I recommended you, they might give you a free drink!” He replied happily.

“Aren’t you influential?! Thanks man!” Gently patting the Hinata’s shoulder in appreciation.

Hinata seemed to really appreciate the praise as he gave an even brighter smile in reply.

 

True to what Hinata said, the restaurant wasn’t very far and Koutarou also got his free drink. The ashen haired waiter was very kind and the cook, Sawamura, was very skilled and made one hell of a dinner. He tried resending the text to Akaashi while eating but to no avail.

After finishing his meal and thanking the two workers kindly, he walked back to the hotel feeling the cool breeze brush against his face. Outside the hotel he tried resending again, _why is there no signal anywhere?_

He thanked Hinata again for the recommendation and gave him and another hotel staff with dark hair and what looked like a permanent scowl a quick “goodnight” before returning to his room. He completed his evening routine and after settling in bed, fell asleep within the next few minutes.

 

* * *

 

 

He woke up to the sound of birds chirping and natural light illuminating his room softly. He glanced over at the digital clock on the bedside table, _Sun May 8, 10:37_. With a stretch and a roll, he was on his feet padding towards the bathroom for a quick shower.

 

He greeted the two hotel staff on his way out and decided to visit Karasu’s again for breakfast, _well it’s more like brunch now._ He passed by the florist which was closed the night before and took a mental note to look around after eating. He was greeted warmly by the waiter, Sugawara, upon entering the restaurant and after placing his order, Koutarou relaxed into his chair awaiting his food.

 

“Thanks again for the meal!” He called on his way out.

“Come back again!” Sawamura and Sugawara replied in unison.

He stepped out of the restaurant only to walk into the store next door. The bell overhead jingled lightly and immediately a short blonde haired girl popped round the corner of the counter.

“H-Hi there! I’m Y-Yachi! H-How may I help you today?” She asked nervously.

Koutarou gave her a soft, gentle smile and replied “I’m just looking around, don’t mind me.”

Her shoulders visibly slumped in relief as she watched the businessman look at each potted flower with interest.

_The roses are really pretty, the green ones in particular._ He moved to the next shelf, _chrysanthemums always look so weird! But I like them too! Green ones look nice..._

“Do you, perhaps, like green flowers, sir?” The nervous florist asked.

“Ah, yeah, well,” Koutarou rubbed his neck in slight embarrassment as he thought of a pair of dark green eyes that he loves dearly. “They just remind me of someone, s’all.”

She nodded furiously in response and was about to say something when a soft female voice called from the back of the store. “Hitoka-chan, can you help me put these on the counter please?” A taller, dark haired, young lady walked into view carrying four trays of soil in her arms stacked so high her face was hidden behind them.

“Ah! Of course, Shimizu-senpai!” And in a flash Yachi was in front of her lifting the top tray into her own arms.

“Here let me help too,” Koutarou offered lifting two of the remaining three in the dark haired, _Shimizu was it?_ , arms into his. It was only then that she realised they had a customer.

“I can’t ask that of you,” she protested.

But Koutarou had already placed the trays onto the counter, “you wanted them here right?” He smiled brightly at her.

She sighed softly, “yes, thank you.”

“No problem!”

After Yachi and Shimizu placed their trays down, they turned to see Koutarou standing in front of the daylilies. _The label says they’re green but they look yellow._ He looked over to the side at the yellow daylilies. _I guess I can see the difference but-_

“Hitoka-chan told me you like green flowers.”

Shimizu’s voice drew Koutarou's attention away from the lilies. “Huh? Oh yeah, I do.”

She smiled softly. “It’s lucky that they bloom all year round. In fact, all our flowers do.”

_What? Flowers can’t possibly bloom all year round. There’s a reason why Spring is called the Season of Regrowth._

“Ah that is pretty lucky!” He replied politely, despite his sceptical thoughts.

 

Koutarou wandered the store a little longer before excusing himself to grab a light snack from the convenient store nearby. After purchasing a few onigiris, he checked the time on his phone. _I have some of time, might as well check out where the meeting is taking place._ With that thought, he followed the map on his phone towards the office building.

By the time he was outside the building, he had eaten all his onigiris. _It’s quite creepy how empty it is. Well, I guess it is a Sunday._ He peeked in through the big glass doors at the lobby area, seeing a large amount of tables and chairs, a counter with a computer sitting atop of it along with other equipment. He backed away and surveyed his surrounding, debating whether to go back to the hotel or explore a bit more of the town. Koutarou’s eyes fell upon a street sign.  _A_ _beach? Hell yeah! I’ll go there, maybe take some photos and show Akaashi when I get back!_ With that, he strolled off in the direction of the sign.

 

The sun was low in the sky, dyeing the clouds a dark shade of orange and yellow. Koutarou started snapping pictures when he heard sand crunching under the footsteps that approached him.

“A tourist? We don’t get many of those here.” A loud boisterous voice asked. Koutarou turned to see only the top of some spiky hair in the lower half of his vision. He dipped his head to look down and there stood a much shorter man with large brown eyes and a tuft of dyed blonde hair over his forehead. Besides him was a bearded man of similar height to Koutarou himself, but he seemed much more shy and withdrawn than his partner. _They’re like total opposites! Physically and personality wise!_

“Ah, I’m here for a business trip but I had some free time so I thought I’d have a look around.” He replied with a smile.

“It’s great here isn’t it?” Koutarou nodded in agreement as the shorter man continued. “Asahi-san,” he pointed a thumb at his partner who gave a shy nod in response, “and I always go on walks like these.”

“Y-Yeah, the weather is nice and like this all year round, so we’ve made it into a daily thing sort of,” the taller man supplied nervously.

_Nice weather all year round? I thought it can snow up here?_

“A-Anyway, we should be going, right Nishinoya?”

The shorter man perked up immediately. “Of course Asahi-san! Have a good evening Mister!” He said with an enthusiastic wave over his head.

“Thank you, you guys too,” Koutarou called back, receiving a shy little wave from Asahi as the pair walked off into the distance.

_I should probably head back too. Need to grab some dinner then some sleep._

 

* * *

 

 

Sunlight was filtering into his room like the morning before. Without even checking the time, Koutarou bolted out of bed with enthusiasm. _Let’s get some breakfast at Karasu’s then get the meeting started!_ He dressed formally in a suit and with a quick “Good Morning” to Hinata and his scowling co-worker, he exited the hotel.

Breakfast was peaceful, with little to no people at the restaurant. Odd for a Monday morning but maybe this was normal. He thanked Sawamura and Sugawara for the umpteenth time and left for the office building he visited yesterday.

 

_Why is it empty?_ He thought as he stared in through the glass doors. _It is Monday right? There should be people here. I have a meeting today, so surely..._

“Excuse me, can I help you sir?” A voice startled Koutarou out of his reveries, besides him stood a shaved-headed man wearing a janitor’s outfit.

“Hey hey hey, I’m Bokuto Koutarou, here for a business meeting to discuss trade connections.” He explained enthusiastically.

The janitor nodded. “I’m afraid no-one will be in today.”

Koutarou’s arched eyebrows furrowed together, “Why’s that?” He asked, confusion obvious in his voice.

“It’s Sunday today sir,” was the simply answer.

“But... It’s definitely...” He cut himself off as he pulled out his phone to double check. _Sun May 8._ Koutarou stares at his phone in shock and confusion.

“Sir? Are you alright?” The janitor asked nervously.

The businessman felt slightly embarrassed at his mistake. “Ah, I’m fine! Don’t worry! Sorry for the trouble. My bad,” he laughed awkwardly as he walked away from the building with hurried steps.

  _I thought it was a Monday today. In fact, I'm about 95% sure it is. But apparently it's not... Maybe I'm just tired or something.  
_

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning, Koutarou grabbed his phone the moment his eyes opened, _Sun May 8._ He stared at it for a moment before dragging his eyes to the digital clock besides the bed, _Sun May 8. What is going on here?!_ He dressed quickly, grabbing nothing but his phone, wallet and keys, then raced down to the lobby.

Hinata and his partner were chatting away animatedly but Koutarou wasted no time interrupting them.

“Hey hey hey, Hinata-kun,” he said a little breathlessly.

“Morning Bokuto-san! Do you need anything?” He asked with a bright smile.

“What...” He paused thinking about how weird the question will seem. He shook his head to compose himself, “What is the date today?”

Hinata looked at him strangely. “The date?” He glanced over at his co-worker who took out his phone to check.

“Sunday 8th,” he said.

“Then what was the date yesterday?” Koutarou asked, almost shouted.

Worry was written all over Hinata’s face. “Bokuto-san, are you alright?”

But the businessman didn’t give him a reply before running out of the hotel towards the office building he was at yesterday and the day before. He arrived in a matter of minutes, slightly out of breath and heart racing for multiple reasons. The moment he caught the same janitor sweeping the path leading to the glass doors, Koutarou ran to him.

“Morning sir, do you need something?”

“What day is it today? Will there be people at the office today? When will there ever be people here?” The janitor visibly took a step back as Koutarou threw these questions at him.

“Err, Sunday 10th. No, because it’s a Sunday. And yes, on weekdays.” He answered slowly, observing Koutarou with ever answer.

_What is seriously going on here?!_ He was confused out of his mind and without a moment longer, he turned on his heels a sprinted back to the hotel. He dialled Akaashi’s number multiple times but each time the call didn’t go through.

He returned to his hotel room, ignoring his shaking hand threw all his belongings into his travel bag. Koutarou checked the train timetable and looked up the time for the first train back to Tokyo.

 

* * *

 

 

His sleep was restless, filled with confusion and worry. The second his alarm sounded he signed out of the hotel, briefly thanking Hinata on his way out. He raced to the train station catching the first morning train to the capital.

 

After what felt like years on the train, he finally arrived at the all too familiar station. Without bothering to hail a cab, he sprinted out into the streets thanking his athletic build for being able to endure so much running today. Koutarou was too focused on making it home that he didn’t notice the slight changes in scenery throughout the city.

His apartment complex came into view and without any hesitation ran up to the door of the place he’d shared with his boyfriend for the last few years. He caught his breath and knocked, trusting his boyfriend to be home. After a moment, the door opened and relief flooded Koutarou at the sight of messy black hair and dark green eyes.

“Hey hey he-” He didn’t get to finish his signature greeting before being pulled into a very, _very_ tight hug. The businessman stiffened at the sudden embrace but quickly relaxed into it, wrapping his arms around the smaller’s waist, taking in his scent and the warmth of his body.

“Did you miss me that much?” He teased, but Akaashi abruptly pulled away, holding his boyfriend at arm’s length, giving him a very unimpressed look. _Is that pain in his eyes?_ His blood ran cold at the thought. He brought his hand gentle up and brushed the back of his knuckles against the smooth cheek of his high school setter. “Hey. What’s wrong?” He asked softly, seeing tears threatening to spill from the person he loves so deeply.

“What do you mean “what’s wrong?” Where have you been?” There was no anger in his voice, just pain, hurt and desperation.

_Did I cause this?_ Koutarou felt guilt sinking into his stomach even though he doesn’t know what he’s done wrong.

“There was no signal, so I couldn’t text you but it’s only been like 4 days, I’m sorry I made you worry, I err...” He tried to explain but stopped when his boyfriend tilted his head slightly with furrowed brows, something he did when he was confused.

“Kou, it’s been 4 years." Akaashi said slowly. His boyfriend simply stared at him, golden eyes wide with confusion. "You’ve been gone for 4 years.”

“But Akaashi... I left on Saturday, that was... 4 days ago?” He was starting to feel lightheaded.

“You did leave on Saturday. The Saturday 4 years and 4 days ago. You’ve been missing every since...” He finished quietly.

_4 years and 4 days? What?_

_I’ve been missing? For 4 years? But I was here a few days ago? I went to Miyagi for 4 days, didn’t I? But it was Sunday 8 th for 3 days, maybe 4. The florist said they sell flowers all year round. The weather was the same too. It sort of makes sense. No it doesn’t! This doesn’t make sense! How have I been missing? I’ve been-_

A soft hand gently cradled on side of his face which snapped him out of his mental turmoil. Koutarou looked up meeting worried green eyes. He found himself sitting on the living room couch with Akaashi kneeling on the floor in front of him.

It was difficult to find his normally loud voice. “What- What happened... while I was gone?” he asked uncomfortably, taking the hand on his cheek into his own.

Akaashi slowly inhaled, composing himself before he spoke. “You left on Saturday 4 years ago for a week long business trip to Miyagi. We texted during your train ride there but afterwards you stopped answering. I figured you didn’t have any signal so I didn’t press on. But then a week became two.” He took a shuddery breath before continuing, “I went to your office to ask whether your stay was extended or something. But then nobody knew where you were. It was later that day that the office informed me that the police had you registered as a missing person.” He paused for a moment, obviously uncomfortable at remembering the details. Koutarou tried to give him a little encouragement and assurance with a little squeeze of his hand. “I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to believe you were gone. So I just waited. Weeks became months and soon enough those months became years.”

Koutarou felt like crying. He had never once wanted to cause any form of pain to Akaashi. But without knowing anything about what happened, this was probably the beyond difficult for his boyfriend. He didn’t even want to imagine the amount of tears Akaashi shed for his sudden disappearance.

He pulled the shorter man into his arms muttering a chain of sorrys through choked sobs. They were silent for a moment, the only sounds were small sniffles and breathing.

“What actually happened to you though?” Akaashi asked softly.

Koutarou didn’t pull away from the embrace, determined to hold his boyfriend for as long as possible. So he recounted his “4 days” in Miyagi, receiving quiet hums and nods to show he was still listening.

 

A silence fell over them for a while before Koutarou spoke up again.

“Keiji?”

“What is it, Kou?”

“How old are you now?”

Akaashi’s eyebrows drew together but answered the man snuggled in his arms anyway.

“28.” There was a small pause. “Why do you ask?”

Koutarou nuzzles closer into Akaashi’s chest before murmuring, “I still feel like I’m 25.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
